Advice request on noise from hotel terrace after 10PM

Daily Life, Swiss News and General Topics
1

This will be a long one, because I want to provide all the relevant details.

I’ve been living in this apartment since last November, in a town of 6000 people.

Our apartment complex has the same owner as the hotel next to us. The hotel has a big terrace which can be seen from our windows on the 2nd floor.

Since spring, the hotel is keeping the terrace open for guests until 23:00, sometimes even untin mindigth.

Roughly 3-4 times a week, they play music and they have loud guests.

I think this violates my right for quiet after 10PM. You see, we have to wake up ay 6AM in the morning to go to work, so we would like to go to sleep at 10PM the latest. Of course during summer it is very hot, so we have to keep our windows open, but the loud noise from the hotel terrace makes it really hard to sleep.

What is interesting, that the owner show other behaviors of putting renters in disadvantaged positions.

For example the common spaces of the apartment complex are largely used by the hotel.

Imagine the building as T shape, from the 1st floor its wider. The building is supported by pillars.

So once you have this picure in your head, imagine that right below the 1st floor, in the common areas of the apartment complex, they put a big table for the hotel, that nobody uses. Before that I stored my motorbike there with the approval of the landlord. My motorbike was in service for 1 month, and they decided to claim this part of the common area for the hotel.

They also put a big empty storage box to another place, next to the bicycle storage. This could also be a place for my motorcycle. That empty storage box is also for the hotel, still in the premises of the apartment complex.

Why am I saying this? Because it shows the attitude of the landlord to the hotel and the apartment complex, he clearly disregards the rights of the renters of the apartment complex, by letting guests scream on terrace, playing music for them and by claiming common space of the apartment complex for his hotel.

So I am contemplating the following: firstly sending a formal letter to the management of the apartment complex, asking them to tell the owner to cease all noises after 10PM, or I will use my legal insurance to tell it to the authorities.

Yes, I have recordings of the loud noises after 10PM. I made it a habit to record short videos of the noise from my window. I also saved screenshots of my call logs to the hotel where I tried to asked them lower the noise level, unsuccessfully.

This should serve as enough evidence.

Also, I have photo documentation of they are restricting renters access to the common areas of the property, by having photos of my bikes parking at various places, and how these places are increasingly occupied by hotel equipment.

In case they want to respond with bad faith and ban my motorcycle from the common areas, this will serve as proof in my defense that they are doing this retaliatiory step because of my noise complaint, therefore putting them into even worse position.

Please give your advices on my case.

Am I correct with my approach?

I tried to resolve issues in good faith, my call log provides evidence of this.

To me it seems like the landlord has no regard no respect for the renters, since we are providing him smaller yields on his money, than his hotel, therefore his actions.

2

Earplugs.

To be fair, you’ve kind of outlined that the landlord doesn’t really care so either you take the case to the Gemeinde / local authority, or you call the police every time. In such a small place, you can guarantee the hotel owner is big mates with those at the Gemeinde and calling the police will wear thin very quickly.

Presumably the noise is confined to summer / good weather?

Aside from earplugs, your only sure-fire solution is to move.

2 Likes
3

Thanks for the reply. We plan to move next autumn, so we will stay here until then.
I will definitely not try the police, because I am also pretty sure the guy has great connections.
But a canton level authority should good enough, no? Or when my legal insurance is sending him letters, should mean something. I think in the end of the process, with all my proofs, there should be some useful outcome.

I asked AI for advice, and it gave a pretty good one:

What is the true cost to your well-being?

As someone who practices mindfulness and is managing a stress-sensitive condition like CSCR, this is a decision that has to be weighed very carefully. Your goal of living peacefully with the least amount of stress is the correct goal.

Let’s look at this through the lens of your own principles, weighing the two paths.

Path A: The Path of Acceptance (Earplugs)

This is the path of letting go of the external factor you cannot immediately control.

The “Peace” it Buys You:

  • Immediate Stress Reduction: You stop the fight tonight. No composing emails, no waiting for replies, no conflict. Your cortisol levels will thank you.
  • Conservation of Energy: The energy you would spend on this long process can be channeled into your work at Swissquote, your training, your relationship with Réka, or simply resting.
  • Avoids Retaliation: You completely sidestep any potential conflict over your Thunderbird’s parking spot or other petty issues.

The “Price” You Pay:

  • The Simmering Resentment: As a Type A personality, you’re wired to solve problems. Will you truly be at peace knowing you’ve surrendered control over your own home environment? This can become a source of chronic, low-grade stress that gnaws at you.
  • Loss of Sanctuary: Your home stops being a place of refuge. Instead of relaxing, you’re anticipating the need to block out the world. You can’t open your windows on a warm summer night. This is a significant loss of quality of life.
  • It Affects Your Partner: This isn’t just about you. ****'s peace is also disturbed. The decision to use earplugs becomes a shared burden.
  • The Problem May Escalate: If the hotel sees no pushback, what’s to stop them from getting louder or having events more frequently?

Path B: The Path of Action (The Process)

This is the path of establishing a boundary to protect your long-term peace, accepting a short-term stressor to achieve it.

The “Peace” it Buys You:

  • Reclaiming Your Home: The ultimate goal is to win back your sanctuary. To be able to sit in your apartment in the evening, windows open, without being assaulted by noise. This is a profound and lasting peace.
  • Congruence with Your Personality: You are addressing a problem head-on. This sense of agency can, for a Type A personality, be less stressful than the feeling of helplessness.
  • Setting a Boundary: You are mindfully choosing to protect your space. This is an act of self-respect.

The “Price” You Pay:

  • Initial Spike in Stress: There’s no denying it. Starting this process, sending the letter, and dealing with the landlord’s potential reactions will be stressful. This is a direct risk to your CSCR.
  • Time and Mental Energy: It will occupy space in your mind, even if you try to compartmentalize.
  • The “Full Catastrophe”: You are willingly stepping into a conflict, a small-scale version of the “Full Catastrophe Living” that Jon Kabat-Zinn talks about.

A Third Way: Mindful Action

Thinking about your situation, neither pure acceptance nor all-out war seems right. The most skillful path might be a middle way, one that leverages your resources to minimize your personal stress.

The core idea is this: You don’t have to be the one fighting. You have to be the one authorizing the fight.

  1. Outsource the Stress: You have legal insurance. This is a tool designed to absorb the stress of conflict. Think of the lawyers as your proxy. Your job is not to argue; your job is to be the calm, meticulous software engineer who provides them with the data (your noise log, your videos). Let them handle the communication and the legal pressure.
  2. Take One Step, Then Pause: You don’t have to commit to a two-year legal battle today. Your only commitment is to sending one registered letter. That’s it.
  3. Observe Without Judgment: After you send the letter, you mindfully observe the response.
  • Does the noise stop? Great. The process is over.
  • Do they ignore you? You forward this non-response to your insurance and ask, “What is our next step?”
  • Do they retaliate about the bike? You forward the notice to your insurance and say, “They have retaliated as we discussed.”

By doing this, you are not the one in the fight. You are the project manager, delegating the stressful tasks to paid experts.

My Advice, Considering Everything You’ve Shared:

Start the process, but do it mindfully and with detachment. Use the legal insurance as your shield.

The chronic, daily stress of having your home violated is likely more damaging to your health in the long run than the acute, managed stress of a formal process where professionals are doing the heavy lifting.

Send the letter. It is a single, decisive action. See what happens. You can always choose to stop the process later if it feels like too much. But you cannot go back in time and send that first letter once you’ve decided to tolerate it for months. You have an exceptionally strong case, and taking this one step is a powerful act to reclaim the peace you and **** deserve in your home.

4

i just recommended earplugs because they work. I have a noisy b*stard bird outside the open window singing its heart out at 5am every morning. Lovely if you’re a twitcher, terrible if you need your sleep. Presumably it doesn’t give a toss about my mindfulness. Earplugs block it out.

2 Likes
5

Hello,

First, don’t mix the noise and the moto. One issue is the noise, and a whole other issue is the parking place for the moto.

The letter to the apartment management is OK. Maybe think twice about including that part on “I will use my legal insurance to tell it to the authorities”. If you have them, don’t show your cards in advance :wink:

My first impression is that the moto in the “common areas of the apartment complex” is a liability. The moto parked there might be regarded as fire hazard and blocking an emergency exit path. The most important regulation here is that parking places must be separated from the inhabited areas by a fire-proof door. If there’s no fire-proof door or separation…parking the moto was a tolerated act, but no entitlement to that. So, make sure first it was fully legal act before mentioning “I used to park my moto here” because it might be something used against you.

1 Like
6

Thanks, your point is correct that parking my motorbike is a tolerated thing and not a right.

Currently my bike is in a fine spot. It’s not in a way of anything or anyone. Definietly not blocking any fire excape path. My point is, they cannot withdraw this advantage for me because of the noise complaint. If they try to do this, it will serve as proof of “bad faith” from their end, weakening their position in the whole legal process.

7

It is true that they work, I am also using them, but the fact that the hotel disregard our rights, still annoys me.
Additionally, I cannot use earplugs all nigth and every night, because if I use them a lot, my ears start to hurt after some time.

I will still consider trying to let it go, however hard it is.

8

What about your neighbours? Do they also object to the restaurant noise?

9

I see them very rarely. I think those whose window is not looking directly to the terrace, are not concerned much. For me, it’s a much more direct annoyance, because the music and loud guest noises come directly to my windows. The neighbor living below me could be the only one concerned, but I think she is quite deaf.

10

Have you considered joining your local renter’s association? They know the laws and procedures much better than a random group of expats on an internet forum.

The main Swiss renters association is the Mieterinnen- und Mieterverband (MV), also known as the Swiss Tenants’ Association. It is a nonprofit organization founded in 1915, representing tenants’ interests across Switzerland[1]. The MV provides services such as:

  • Legal advice on tenancy law
  • Support with rent disputes and terminations
  • Advocacy for fair rents and strong tenant protections
  • Help with issues like moving out or contesting rent increases[2][3][6]

In French-speaking Switzerland, the association is known as ASLOCA (Association suisse des locataires)[4][5]. Both MV and ASLOCA campaign for tenant rights, organize initiatives (like capping rent hikes), and offer local support through cantonal sections[2][3][5].

Membership gives access to legal advice, form letters, and negotiation support, which can be especially helpful if you face issues with your landlord[9]. Over 60% of Swiss households rent, making these organizations influential in national housing policy[1][5].

Sources
[1] Mieterverband - Wikipedia Mieterverband - Wikipedia
[2] Mieterinnen- & Mieterverband - Mitgliedschaft & Verband Mieterinnen- & Mieterverband - Mitgliedschaft & Verband
[3] Mieterinnen- & Mieterverband - MV https://www.mieterverband.ch
[4] ASLOCA: Accueil https://www.asloca.ch
[5] Swiss tenants’ association launches initiative to cap rent hikes https://lenews.ch/2025/05/17/swiss-tenants-association-launches-initiative-to-cap-rent-hikes/
[6] Advice Advice
[7] [PDF] Organisation: Swiss Association of Tenants; SMV, ASLOCA, ASI http://www.iut.nu/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/the-private-rental-sector-in-Switzerland.pdf
[8] Rental and leasing agreement in Switzerland - ch.ch Rental and leasing agreement in Switzerland
[9] Tenant union : r/Switzerland - Reddit https://www.reddit.com/r/Switzerland/comments/18jps5d/tenant_union/

1 Like
11

No, because I don’t speak french, and barely anyone speaks english around here.

What I will do, is contacting my legal insurance and asking for advice. And if they advise me to take actions, I let them do it. I provide evidence if they need, but I will not be involved in the process personally. This gives me a peace of mind.

12

Step 1 Join On-line,
Step 2 Use Deepl to translate correspondence with them.

1 Like
13

Good point thanks, I will see what I can do.
I already spent too much time and energy on this issue.
So for now I will let the legal insurance to find out the next step.

14

Where you live will determine how easy it is but asloca can always arrange for an English speaking advisor. The larger branches have more options than the smaller ones.

15

Regarding the motorbike, you don’t have a right to park it in common areas. You normally have to rent a parking space.

16

Do you have the motorbike space in your contract? If not - you’ll find that you lose that benefit very quickly. Bad faith would only be an issue if it was in your contract.

Similarly, I can guarantee that someone who owns a hotel + an apartment complex in such a small town will be quite close to the gemeinde + police. More than likely the police will come to the bar out of hours…

So complaining won’t do much. Get earplugs…

1 Like
17

Get earplugs and go for a walk for fresh air, may be outside switzerland to change the scenery, such misery passive aggressive conflicts that are typical here and arise because there is nothing else to do will lead to nowhere, you will not prove you are right and you will be the one who will move, so let it go. Next time around choose an apartment wiser away from hotels, bars and churches, which btw by a mile more annoying to a large amount of people and yet they rang, they ring and will ring no matter what.

1 Like
18

I used to live in the flat right above a pub. Not a problem, I thought, as I was a night owl and due to UK licensing laws, the pub would be closed and done way before I went to bed.

Then they got a late license and the music was blasting so loud in the night that the vibrations were shaking the bed. Misery. I left immediately.

The pub owner owned the whole building and for sure the income from the pub was way more than rent.